Sanchez Suffers Setback, Concerned He Might Not Play Rest Of Season
By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak
COMERICA PARK (CBS DETROIT) - Detroit Tigers manager Brad Ausmus gave some bad news Tuesday on starting pitcher Anibal Sanchez.
"Sanchy threw yesterday and had a little bit of a setback," Ausmus said. "He went to see a doctor today and we'll kind of figure out what the plan is for him going forward, but it's obviously kind of set his schedule back."
Ausmus confirmed the setback means Sanchez is no longer a possibility to start Saturday, but Ausmus added the team was encouraged by how Sanchez felt Tuesday. The manager said Sanchez's throwing had been going well until he aggravated his original injury.
"He went quite a ways," Ausmus said. "He actually backed up to about 150 feet, was throwing good, felt good, then came back in at 60 feet to do a little flat-ground, bullpen-type thing, and it wasn't until he threw a change-up, I believe, that he felt it. He actually felt good.
"This isn't an injury that has a lot of history with it, so I can't really speak as to why or what's going to happen next," Ausmus added.
Sanchez spoke after Ausmus, and he did not sound optimistic.
With the regular season nearing its end, Sanchez said he is concerned he may not be able to pitch again this season. As of now, there is no timetable for his return.
"It depends how fast I heal," Sanchez said. "It's nothing like they're going to say, 'All right, you're going to wait for two weeks, or one week.' It's nothing like that. It's how fast does my body heal that area."
Sanchez said the pain he felt when he threw Monday was the same he experienced when he originally suffered the injury.
"I threw just one pitch, yeah, because that kind of sore, you just throw one pitch, and as soon as I felt, I had to stop," Sanchez said. "I couldn't even move my arm.
"It's really hard to explain that kind of pain," Sanchez added. "It's something like when you have a needle inside you and you try to move, that's the pain, like that. It really hurts. It's nothing like compared with anything that I felt when I had my shoulder or elbow issue before."
Sanchez said the results from the ultrasound he just underwent were largely positive, however.
"I think it's pretty good news," Sanchez said. "My tendon was pretty good, everything was good, I've just got some problem from the scar tissue inside. Probably that's what I tore yesterday when I played catch, and that's what I feel right now. Now I've got full motion on my arm, but it's still sore."
Sanchez and reliever Joakim Soria are both on the 15-day disabled list for the Tigers. When Ausmus spoke with media prior to Tuesday's game, he said Soria had yet to throw but was scheduled to do so that afternoon.
The American League ERA champion last season, Sanchez has a 3.46 ERA for Detroit so far this season.
